The Agricultural Systems of the World: An Evolutionary ApproachThis book is about the prevalent characteristics and distribution of the major agricultural systems of the world - shifting cultivation, wet rice cultivation, pastoral nomadism, Mediterranean agriculture, mixed farming, dairying, plantations, ranching and large-scale grain production. In Part One some major periods and processes that have affected agriculture are discussed. Chapter 2 deals with the origins and early diffusion of agriculture and its significance. Chapter 3 deals with the subsequent diffusion of crops and livestock, particularly since the discovery of the New World, and Chapter 4 with the effect upon agriculture of industrialisation and urbanisation since 1850. In Part Two of the book some description of each type of agriculture is given. It is the author's belief that there can be no adequate account of the prevailing character of world agriculture without recourse to the evolution of agricultural systems. Thus each chapter in Part Two is an essay on the historical development of each of the major systems. |
Contents
The early history of agriculture | 9 |
The diffusion of crops and livestock | 24 |
Technical and economic changes in agriculture | 45 |
Shifting agriculture | 57 |
Wetrice cultivation in Asia | 75 |
Pastoral namadism | 112 |
Mediterranean agriculture | 123 |
Mixed farming in western Europe and North America | 152 |
Plantations | 210 |
Ranching | 241 |
Largescale grain production | 256 |
Conclusion | 284 |
Appendix | 287 |
Notes | 289 |
| 308 | |
| 344 | |
Common terms and phrases
adopted agriculture arable Argentina Australia bananas basin Belt Brazil Britain butter cattle cent century A.D. cereal cheese China coast coffee colonial corn cotton countries crops cultivated area dairy decline delta domesticated Dovring early eastern Economic Geography eighteenth century England European expansion exports fallow farmers farming systems fertilisers Geographical grain grass grazing growing grown growth hectares herds humid pampa important increase India indigenous industry introduced irrigation Java km² labour land livestock maize major Mediterranean Mediterranean basin methods milk millennium B.C. mixed farming North America north-western Europe northern Europe output pastoral nomads Plains plantation plants plough population population densities practised production rainfall ranching regions rice sawahs settlement sheep shifting cultivation sixteenth century smallholders soil South East Asia South West southern Spain specialised steppes sugar-cane tion transhumance tropical United upland valley vegetables West Africa West Asia western Europe wet-rice cultivation wheat whilst World yields Zealand zebu
Popular passages
Page 3 - The functioning forms which appear to dominate every type of agriculture may be listed under five heads : 1. The crop and livestock association. 2. The methods used to grow the crops and produce the stock. 3. The intensity of application to the land of labor, capital, and organization, and the outturn of product which results.
Page 3 - ... 1 . The crop and livestock association 2. The methods used to grow the crops and produce the stock 3. The intensity of application to the land of labour, capital and organisation, and the out-turn of product which results 4.